Fifteen years ago, the South African Open celebrated its centenary – and it did so in some style. In first place was Ernie Els. In second place was Retief Goosen. In third place was Louis Oosthuizen and just behind him in fourth place was Charl Schwartzel.
That historic renewal wasn't quite the changing of the guard – Oosthuizen had won the Open earlier in the year and Els later went on to take a second Claret Jug for himself – but it wasn't far off, Schwartzel joining his friend in becoming a major champion just a few months later.
Given that Durban Country Club is a historic venue in South African golf, one where Bobby Locke and Gary Player had both won in the past and Els already too, the event couldn't have gone much better. It was a golden period for golf in the Rainbow Nation and the SA Open was some way to celebrate.
Now, we are at another crossroads but for different reasons. Two of the three best South African golfers currently play on the LIV Golf circuit, meaning for the most part they require invitations or to go through qualifying to take part in majors. And while Thriston Lawrence has done his level best to follow Branden Grace in winning multiple times and contending at the highest level, there's been a lack of support for him.
Things though might be changing and in fact, we should be starting the week toasting Aldrich Potgieter's PGA Tour breakthrough at the age of 20. By the end of the week, it's possible that Christo Lamprecht is a Korn Ferry Tour winner, while promising amateur Christiaan Maas was initially priced up at just 50/1 to win this prestigious tournament on a rare trip back from college golf in the USA.
Charl Schwartzel is yet to win the SA Open but that at least ought to guarantee his focus and he has a fabulous course record, while Branden Grace, champion in 2020, was a staying-on second behind Oosthuizen when last he visited Durban in 2014. It's a shame Oosthuizen, the fourth member of the all-South African LIV team, isn't here to join them as he won back-to-back events at Durban and remains a big draw.
Schwartzel ended last year in decent form and has started this one with a couple of reasonable efforts. Grace on the other hand hasn't yet justified a reprieve from his friends in this bonus season for the Stingers but did also play well towards the end of 2024. But it's Burmester who they all have to beat and I'm surprised he's not more like a 7/1 shot in a field which really isn't very good for a title this significant.
Burmester has won three of his last five starts in South Africa, the most recent by seven shots on the Sunshine Tour. That was with a winning total of 28-under and he's made for low-scoring events, so the relatively calm forecast combined with plenty of pre-tournament rain to soften this coastal course are both in his favour.
No, he doesn't have form here, but it's 13 years since he played Durban CC and he's simply a different player, one who has started the LIV Golf season with finishes of fourth and 12th. DataGolf make him the seventh-best player on that circuit right now and his results since joining have been impressively consistent, including a lucrative win at Doral.
I've a slight question mark as to how often he'll be able to reach for the driver, his biggest weapon, but that rain may be a factor and with four par-fives plus a driveable par-four, there are plenty of scoring holes around a course which is very short by modern standards. Difficulty here can vary dramatically according to the weather, but despite recent modifications I can't see this being a real test in the expected conditions.
Indeed the fact that landing areas have been widened, and that some of the most threatening shrubbery that used to line the fairways has been cut back, suggests to me that wind really will be needed to keep a lid on things here. There is some forecast for the weekend but even that isn't significant and Burmester, who won a shootout by the sea in Tenerife in 2021, should be just fine.
Burmester was an 11/1 shot at Leopard Creek late last year and the same sort of price here doesn't make a great deal of sense to me. One, there's no Oosthuizen, no Christiaan Bezuidenhout, no Lawrence, the other three players who made up the top four in the betting. Nor are Tom McKibbin, Erik van Rooyen or Matti Schmid in the field. Two, he really hasn't figured out Leopard Creek yet still found himself in contention.
You could say the same about Durban but so far that's only through lack of opportunities and in the conditions, the player whose last four SA Open results read 4-4-5-1 has to be given the benefit of the doubt. He's been ticking off wins at this level over the past few years and, with these co-sanctioned events so often won by a classy home player, a strong bid for the title is fully expected.
I'd be more inclined to chance Grace than I would Schwartzel, whose desperation to win this has probably cost him at least twice before. We saw how much it meant to Oosthuizen when he finally got his hands on this trophy and every great South African golfer has done so. Schwartzel would be a notable exception were his name to remain missing from it and maybe that'll continue to make things difficult.
In-form Jayden Schaper is yet to win a professional title and fellow youngster Casey Jarvis, who played the SA Amateur here when just 14 years old, might be better value at almost twice the price. However, I prefer the man who won that event, DEON GERMISHUYS.
Germishuys has in fact won a couple of amateur titles here in the city of Durban but none bigger than in 2018, when he beat a course member in a tight final to get his hands on the trophy. No doubt he'll be relishing this return and the chance to capture a brilliant double.
The timing is fantastic as he produced his best golf of the year to be third last week, his approach play and putter firing, and while he wasn't much of a factor at this course in 2022, he'd missed two cuts in three to begin the year and was still very much finding his way as a professional.
Once heralded as 'the future of South African golf' by Oosthuizen, who is something of a mentor to a player who comes from the same part of the country, Vorster is another who played the SA Amateur seven years ago. Although failing to advance to the latter stages, he was T3 in the 36-hole qualifier and fared well here at Durban.
His professional career hadn't really taken off when a hip injury forced him into a break last year, but that seems to have done him the world of good as he contended in two of his first three comeback events and has largely held his form since then.
Runner-up to Potgieter in the Amateur Championship, I'm sure he'll draw a little inspiration from seeing him go so close to winning on the PGA Tour and he looks like he's ready for the next step up himself, having contended several times as a DP World Tour rookie in 2024.
Based on that effort in the Amateur and some form in the Middle East it's not unreasonable to believe that Bairstow might thrive back by the coast and while he grew up in Sheffield, I've played his home course and it's quite fiddly, a description many would give to Durban CC even after the extensive work that has been done to it.
Couvra won the SA Amateur Stroke Play, the Proudfoot Trophy and the SA Amateur in a history-making run exactly two years ago and best of all, this came at Mount Edgecombe, right here in Durban and just 20 minutes up the road from this week's venue.
The middle of those three titles came after sudden-death with Potgieter so returning to Durban is sure to bring those memories flooding back, particularly after the big South African so nearly won on the PGA Tour at the weekend.
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